Monday, July 1, 2013

Day 2 Afternoon

This afternoon 25 of us went up to the orphanage to play with the kids. We scraped a couple
of vehicles on the way up to the orphanage. The only rule in Haiti while driving is there are no rules. While we were up at the orphanage it rained really hard. And when it rains it Haiti, it pours. All the roads turned into a river. While it rained we played with the kids inside the orphanage.

-Caleb Stoltzfoos

Following the storm, we were able to return outside to play games with the children. We played a round of freeze tag until we realized running games were not a smart choice for the slippery conditions. Instead, we played the Haitian version of "hot potato." The music to this game was replaced with "tik-tok, tik-tok.....etc...BOOM!"

-Mitch Naumann

What a blessing it has been to be at the orphanage with the kids over the last couple of days.  When we get off of the bus, the children are so excited to see us & run over to us.  Many of the students have connected with one or two in particular, & the connection with them continued today as well.  After we play with the kids for a while, we gather them all together for singing, skits & the lesson.  Let me just say that we are very thankful for the wonderful translators that travel everywhere with us.  They help us to communicate to the children, as we share the love of Jesus with them.  We have tried to picked up a few phrases in Creole that we can use to communicate to the children.  The main phrases that the students have been using are "Bonjou" (Good Morning), "Bonswa" (Good Afternoon), "Kijan ou rele?" (What's your name?) "Mwen rele" (My name is...) "Ki laj ou" (How old are you?) & "Mesi" (Thank you).  The students have been doing a wonderful job jumping in, playing games, & just loving on the children in the orphanage.  It is very hard to leave the children to return back to the base house.  They plaster their faces against the inside of the orphanage, or wave to us outside as we all climb back into the bus to head home.  What an adventure it is to drive back to the base house.  Many of the students have described the traffic in Haiti as "organized chaos", but they definitely have a system.  We came back to the base house, with a wonderful home cooked meal waiting for us.  As I sit here typing, I am listening to the students in the living room laughing with each other, playing games, & teaching James (one of our translators) how to play Dutch Blitz.  Another great day in Ayiti    (Haiti in Creole).  Thank you for all of your prayers.  We feel them!

-Jen Van Dalen

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